News & Announcements

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has announced that it will send a letter to Baba Ahmed, the Inspector General of Police, requesting that Hudu Ari, the resident electoral commissioner for Adamawa State, be looked into and prosecuted.

The decision was made by the commission on Tuesday in Abuja during a technical meeting with national INEC commissioners.

INEC also made the decision to inform President Major General Muhammadu Buhari of the REC’s action in writing to Secretary to the Government of the Federation Boss Mustapha.

The Duke of Sussex will be present at the King’s coronation but Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, will not be attending, Buckingham Palace has said.

There had been speculation about whether the couple would travel to the coronation but it has now emerged that Prince Harry will attend alone.

The prince will join more than 2,000 guests at Westminster Abbey on 6 May.

It will be the first time he has been seen with the Royal Family since his bombshell memoir Spare was published.

Prince Harry’s book vividly revealed the depth of his disagreements with other members of the Royal Family and he has since spoken of feeling “different” from the rest of his family.

The King and Queen Consort will be crowned next month in front of more than 2,000 guests.

The decision for Meghan to reject the invitation will be seen as part of these continuing, unresolved family tensions.

Prince Harry’s book – and an earlier Netflix series – had highlighted his anxiety about negative media coverage, particularly towards Meghan, and he had warned of a lack of support from his family.

It had been unclear whether Prince Harry would attend his father’s coronation, but it is now confirmed that he will be at the Abbey, meaning King Charles will have both his sons present for the ceremony.

The date is also the fourth birthday of Prince Harry and Meghan’s son, Prince Archie, who will remain in the US with his mother.

Prince Harry and Meghan issued a statement along the same lines as the palace: “The Duke of Sussex will attend the Coronation service at Westminster Abbey on May 6th. The Duchess of Sussex will remain in California with Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet.”

Neither the couple’s spokeswoman nor Buckingham Palace commented on the decision, but there were strongly divided opinions on social media, with supporters praising Meghan for standing up for herself while opponents criticised her for “snubbing” her royal in-laws.

Prince Harry and Meghan had been contacted by email more than a month ago about attending the coronation, prompting weeks of speculation about whether they would go.

The announcement means that Prince Harry will be part of the historic ceremony, joining other members of the Royal Family, public figures, world leaders and 450 representatives of charities and community groups.

As he is no longer a “working royal”, it remains to be seen what part Prince Harry will play in the ceremony. For the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee Prince Harry and Meghan were not allowed to take part in the traditional appearance on the Buckingham Palace balcony.

It is expected that Prince William, as Prince of Wales, will have a prominent role in the coronation – and after Prince Harry’s dramatic account of their falling out there will be attention on the two brothers being seen together again.

Prince Harry’s memoir described a physical altercation between the brothers and arguments about their father marrying Camilla.

The Queen Consort’s grandchildren will be among the children with roles at the coronation and Buckingham Palace has said that after that event will be an “appropriate time” for her to be known as Queen Camilla.

As well as the coronation service, there is a long weekend of public events and concerts which the Royal Family will be expected to attend. However, it is not known how long Prince Harry will be in the UK.

Prince Harry made an unexpected appearance in London in March, when he attended a court hearing in a case against Associated Newspapers about allegations of privacy breaches, but he was not thought to have met his brother or father during the visit.

Governor David Umahi of Ebonyi State, who is also the senator-elect for the Ebonyi South senatorial district, has said that members of his family plotted to sabotage him during the presidential election on February 25.

As he appeared on Channels Television on Monday night, the state’s governor said that he will step down on May 29, 2023, to be replaced by a new administration.

In the run-up to the presidential election, Umahi said he was unaware that members of his family had supported Peter Obi, a candidate for the Labour Party.

He claimed that voters chose Obi as a protest against the difficulties they were experiencing.

“In all honesty, I didn’t give any chance to the Labour Party to win any election in my state (Ebonyi State) because what we had put in place was such that no other political party should be able to win anything, not even councillorship elections in my state. I see the Labour Party vote as a protest against my party; against the Peoples Democratic Party.

“I was very surprised; even in my family, there was a conspiracy against me. I did not know that they voted for Peter Obi, but in the other election, they voted for the All Progressives Congress because of what we’ve done in the state. It’s very surprising.

“It was not a vote for His Excellency, Peter Obi. As such, there are seeming hardships and challenges in Nigeria,” he claimed.

Abubakar Abdulaziz, 30, of Sabuwar Santa, Musawa Local Government Area, Katsina State, is now being held by police on suspicion of allegedly abducting and burying a three-year-old boy alive.

According to reports, Abdulaziz buried the kidnapped boy alive despite only receiving N150,000 of the N800,000 ransom demanded by the boy’s father.

The event was reported on Monday by CSP Gambo Isah, the Katsina State Police Command’s spokesman.

Isah claimed Abdullah had confessed to committing the crime when he was apprehended on Thursday as a result of a tip-off.

The police spokesman explained, “On April 12, 2023, around 3pm, the command succeeded in arresting one Abubakar Abdulaziz, 30, of Sabuwar Santa, the Musawa Local Government Area, Katsina State, a suspected kidnapper and killer of a three-year-old child.

“The fact of the case is that on March 23, 2023, around 1am, the suspect criminally trespassed into the residence of one Adamu Alhassan of Bacirawa village, the Musawa Local Government Area, Katsina State, while he was asleep and kidnapped his three-year-old son to an unknown destination.

“He dropped a letter directing the said Adamu Alhassan to pay a ransom of N800,000 and providing a contact phone number. However, the father made contact, negotiated and paid N150,000 to secure the release of his child, but to no avail.

“Upon receipt of the report, detectives swung into action and succeeded in arresting the suspect (Abubakar Abdulaziz) in connection with the case. During the investigation, he confessed to the commission of the offence and further confessed to having buried the child alive after receiving the ransom.”

Isah disclosed that the incident was already the subject of an investigation.

Ondo State Police Command announced on Monday that it has detained seven people in connection with the killing of Tope Olorunfemi by a mob in Akure, the state’s capital.

Victor Amos, one of the suspects, just revealed that he used a stone to smash the victim in the head.

On Easter Monday, a crowd attacked the Ijoka neighborhood of Akure and killed driver Olorunfemi after his Toyota automobile allegedly crushed one person to death and injured six others.

After that, some locals set fire to his car and proceeded to lynch him.

They claimed to have discovered some fetish items in his car, leading them to believe he was a “Yahoo boy.”

The state police public relations officer, Ms. Funmilayo Odunlami, revealed that four of the seven suspects were paraded before journalists at the police headquarters in Akure.

Samuel Olatunji, 20, Pelumi Farotimi, 42, Ismaila Durotoye, 32, and Victor Amos, 30, were the suspects displayed, according to the PPRO.

Odunlami noted that while the suspects would face charges in court for death and arson, an investigation into the incident is still underway. She stated that there are still more individuals at large who the command is pursuing.

She said, “Last week Monday, we had a case of jungle justice in Akure in which a young man who was driving along Ijoka Road had an accident and unfortunately killed one commercial motorcyclist and injured six others.

“Unfortunately, those who were at the scene resorted to jungle justice. Some of these people have been arrested. Seven people are in custody but four principal suspects are here. Jungle justice is illegal, it is against the law. It is wrong for anybody to kill anybody anyone under the guise that the person had killed someone else.

“We are not through with the arrest of suspects. Some suspects are still at large. After investigation, all suspects involved will be charged with arson and murder.”

The fact that the victim had been buried on Monday was also revealed by the PPRO.

Amos, one of the suspects, admitted to hitting the deceased during the parade and maintained that fetish items were discovered in the deceased’s car.

He said, “On getting to the scene of the accident, the deceased had been beaten to a pulp, and he had been soaked in his blood. Commercial motorcyclists beat him mercilessly. I didn’t even know those that stoned him. On getting to the scene, I was moved by the lifeless bodies of those that he crushed and that made me pick up a stone and hit him on the head. I didn’t even know that he was the younger brother of my friend.

“When I gave him some punches, he held on to my leg and to release myself from his grip before he could drag me into the gutter, I tried to choke him on his neck. I indeed saw a small coffin and tortoise inside the car before it was burnt. But I was no longer there when the car was set ablaze.

“I was not arrested by the police. I went to report myself at Ala Police Station when my picture was being circulated as part of those who participated in the beating. I told the police that I beat and stoned him but I did not kill him.”

The Peoples Democratic Party governorship primary in Kogi State on Sunday, according to Yomi Awoniyi, a former deputy governor of Kogi State, lacked legitimacy.

Dino Melaye, a former senator who represented Kogi West, won the primary with 313 votes. Awoniyi received 77 votes to place second.

Awoniyi, however, characterized Melaye’s votes as the result of a “tainted delegates list” in a statement made on Monday in Lokoja.

“Without an iota of doubt, I make bold to say Senator Melaye’s victory is a pyrrhic one. This victory portends great danger to the unity of our party and the prospect of winning the November 11 governorship election.

“The primary that threw up Senator Melaye was flawed; 158 delegates, who emerged from the state ad hoc congress of March 29, 2023, were replaced by the woeful Senator Abdul Ningi Congress Committee,  working in concert with Senator Dino Melaye’s enablers within the party hierarchy at the highest level.”

Awoniyi argued that it was unfair to give any candidate more than 158 votes in a contest with 739 votes and eight candidates. Because it gives the favored candidate an unfair advantage, it is dishonest, dishonorable, wicked, and unwholesome. Dino Melaye, a senator, won an illegal primary.

“This pyrrhic victory may look like a fait accompli, but the dust is unlikely to settle even beyond the November 11, 2023 governorship election.  From the forgoing, it may surprise many that I do not necessarily blame Senator Dino Melaye for where we find ourselves today. He needs to search his heart to see if he has behaved well, as a counsellor of the celestial, which he claims to be. But I blame his enablers.”

Melaye, in the meantime, gave God praise in a statement on Monday for making him the PDP’s choice for governor of Kogi State.

He said,  “Today (Sunday), April 16, 2023, the Almighty God proved himself in my life, by responding to my Biblical name, Daniel.   He fought on my behalf, and delivered victory to me, which I received on behalf of all other aspirants, the great members of the Peoples Democratic Party  in and outside Kogi State, and the good people of our dear Kogi State.

“Coming on the heels of the democratic sacrilege committed by the All Progressives Congress in Kogi State about 48 hours ago, and the electoral revulsion belching out of Adamawa State, it is soul-lifting to have the PDP demonstrate to the world that Nigeria is not the jungle that the APC paints it in the recently conducted elections over the last 50 days.

“I thank the leaders of our party at the national, State, local and ward levels, my dear brothers who advanced the cause of democracy in this contest and our numerous supporters who ensured that peace reigned , decorum prevailed, and conflicts were contained all through the process.”

Hudu Yunusa-Ari, the resident electoral commissioner for Adamawa State, was told to avoid the commission’s state headquarters on Monday by the Independent National Electoral Commission.

The basis for INEC’s move was Yunusa-statement Ari’s that Aisha Dahiru, better known by her stage name Binani, was the winner of the All Progressives Congress’ supplemental election for governor on Saturday.

Also, the commission prohibited the REC from visiting the office in a letter that was signed by Rose Oriaran-Anthony, the commission’s secretary.

The Peoples Democratic Party governors demanded his prosecution on Monday as condemnation of the REC’s actions grew.

However on Monday, Binani filed a lawsuit at the Federal High Court in Abuja asking for an order to stop INEC and its representatives from proceeding with the declaration of the election’s winner while her legal matter is still unresolved.

While the results were being tallied, Yunusa-Ari declared Binani the winner of the additional elections, confusing the state and raising alarm across the nation.

Before the results were announced, Binani was behind PDP Governor Ahmadu Fintiri, who had a lead of 31,249 votes.

Before to Binani, who received 390, 275 votes, Fintiri had received 421, 524 votes.

The state returning officer, Professor Mohammed Mele of the Department of English and Linguistics, University of Maiduguri, Borni State, was unable to declare Fintiri the winner of the March 18 governorship election, though, because the margin of victory did not exceed the number of invalid votes in 69 polling places.

Opposition parties and former INEC national commissioners criticized Yunusa-move Ari’s as unusual, and some Nigerians claimed the incident illustrated the irregularity of the general elections.

But the INEC overturned the decision and summoned the REC, who had assumed the returning officer’s responsibilities, and other officials to Abuja.

But, due to the ongoing aviation workers’ strike, which has shut down airport operations countrywide, the troubled REC and his colleagues were unable to appear before a committee of the commission in Abuja on Monday.

It was learned that the airline strike also had an impact on all of the INEC national commissioners who would make up the committee since they were unable to book return flights to Abuja.

It was discovered that senior INEC officials who had taken part in the rerun elections in several states were traveling back by road and were scheduled to arrive at the INEC headquarters in Abuja on Tuesday (today).

But, Oriaran-Anthony noted in a letter he sent to Yunusa-Ari on April 17, 2023, that the administrative secretary of the commission in Adamawa State had been instructed to take over the INEC headquarters in the state.

The letter read, “I hereby convey the commission’s decision that you (Barrister Hudu Yunusa-Ari), Resident Electoral Commissioner, Adamawa State should stay away from the commission’s office in Adamawa State immediately until further notice. The administrative secretary has been directed to take full charge of INEC, Adamawa State with immediate effect.”

Senator Dino Melaye has emerged as the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) candidate for the November 11 governorship election in Kogi State.

He defeated other aspirants in the keenly contested primary election.

The former lawmaker will be up against Usman Ododo, the flagbearer of the All Progressives Congress (APC) for the election.  

Two people were killed and four others injured after another shooting in Louisville, Kentucky, Saturday night.

The Louisville Metro Police Department was dispatched to Chickasaw Park at around 9 pm on reports of a shooting, WLKY reported.

When officers arrived, they discovered two people dead at the scene and four other victims injured with gunshot wounds, a spokesperson for the city’s police department stated.

The four victims were transported to the University of Louisville Hospital for treatment.

One of the four victims was in critical condition, the spokesperson informed.

After a preliminary investigation, officers found that there were hundreds of people in the park, but no witnesses to the shooting, Louisville Metro Police Deputy Chief Paul Humphrey said.

There were no known suspects at the time of reporting.

The Louisville Metro Police Department led the investigation into the incident.

This shooting came just five days after the mass shooting at the Old National Bank in the same city, about six miles away.

The previous mass shooting killed five people, all between 40 and 64 years old, and injured eight others.

Connor James Sturgeon, 25, a former employee of the bank, was later identified as the shooter.

He was killed by responding officers during the incident.

“It wasn’t just Monday’s shooting. Wasn’t just today’s shooting. There were several other shootings in between. We lost more lives in between Monday’s mass shooting and tonight’s,” Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg said.

“Please, put your weapons down. There are so many ways to resolve disputes, and to talk to one another. Gun violence is not the solution to anything. Please put your weapons down,” he pleaded.

On Monday, SpaceX began counting down to the launch of Starship, the most potent rocket ever created and the vehicle that will carry astronauts to the Moon, Mars, and beyond.

According to SpaceX, the massive rocket was being fueled and was set to take off from Starbase, the company’s spaceport in Boca Chica, Texas, at 8:20 a.m. Central Time (1320 gmt).

If Monday’s launch attempt is postponed, fallback times are scheduled for later in the week, something billionaire SpaceX creator Elon Musk suggested was a likely possibility.

“It’s a very risky flight,” Musk said in a live event on Twitter Space on Sunday. “It’s the first launch of a very complicated, gigantic rocket.

“There’s a million ways this rocket could fail,” he added. “We’re going to be very careful and if we see anything that gives us concern, we’ll postpone.”

Musk said he wanted to “set expectations low” because “probably tomorrow will not be successful – if by successful one means reaching orbit.”

The United States space agency NASA has picked the Starship spacecraft to ferry astronauts to the Moon in late 2025 – a mission known as Artemis III – for the first time since the Apollo programme ended in 1972.

The Starship is a 164-foot (50-meter) tall spacecraft that can carry people and cargo. It is mounted on top of a first-stage Super Heavy rocket that is 230 feet tall.

The spaceship and the Super Heavy rocket, collectively known as Starship, have never taken off together, despite the spacecraft’s several sub-orbital test flights on its own.

Just three minutes after launch, if everything goes as planned, the Super Heavy rocket will separate from Starship and splash down in the Gulf of Mexico.

The six-engined Starship will continue to ascend to a height of close to 150 miles before making a nearly complete rotation of the planet and splashing down in the Pacific Ocean roughly 90 minutes after launch.

“If it gets to orbit, that’s a massive success,” Musk said.

“If we get far enough away from the launchpad before something goes wrong then I think I would consider that to be a success,” he said. “Just don’t blow up the launchpad.

“The payload for this mission is information,” he said. “Information that allows us to improve the design of future Starship builds.”